The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians now owns the Arrowhead Springs Hotel.

Cru, formerly Campus Crusade for Christ, owned the 1,900-acre property in San Bernardino’s Waterman Canyon since 1962, but it announced in 2014 it was looking to sell the historic landmark for $60 million.

San Manuel spokesman Jacob Coin said the tribe has been working with Cru over the last year, negotiating the sale of the property, and escrow closed Thursday.

“We’re very happy we’ve got an opportunity to take these lands under the tribe’s ownership,” Coin said.

He said the land is part of the Serrano Indians’ aboriginal homelands, and the natural hot springs that are part of the area’s namesake were used by San Manuel ancestors.

“It’s been the tribe’s wish and dream to have as much of that homeland in their ownership as possible,” Coin said.

Coin would not disclose how much the tribe paid for the property, saying both the tribe and Cru agreed to keep the purchase price confidential.

Another reason the tribe chose to buy the property is because its roughly 900-acre reservation in the hills above San Bernardino’s northeastern edge is almost built out, and the tribe needs more residential space, Coin said.

“We have a number of young adults turning 21 and looking for places to live, and the existing tribal lands are not capable of accommodating them any more,” said Coin. “We just don’t have the space anymore to build more home sites.”

San Manuel Chairwoman Lynn Valbuena said in a statement the Arrowhead Springs property will provide “adequate space to meet the housing needs for our people in the coming decades.”

The tribe has discussed potential uses for the property including schools, parks and ceremonial gathering places, Coin said.

Cru Vice President Steve Sellars said in a statement that as his organization began to outgrow the Arrowhead Springs property, the need to sell became necessary as it became increasingly difficult for missionary staff to raise the necessary funds to live in such an expensive state. The organization relocated its global headquarters to Orlando, Florida, in 1991.

Although the Arrowhead Springs property had been for sale since Cru vacated in the early 1990s, it wasn’t until 2014 when the organization launched an aggressive marketing campaign to sell the property.

“Since our move, we’ve looked for a new owner who would embrace the community and seek its prosperity. We are confident that the San Manuel tribe will do both,” Sellars said in his statement.

The city will benefit directly and indirectly, said Councilman Fred Shorett, who represents that part of the city.

“We weren’t getting any tax revenue, with Cru being a nonprofit, and it should go back on the tax rolls immediately,” Shorett said. “It will be creating, if not permanent jobs, temporary jobs as they work on it. … Just having (San Manuel as partners in our community is a value as far as I’m concerned. They reached out to us saying they want to be a member of the community — as they have been for hundreds of years — and I look forward to continuing that great relationship.”

Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of Arrowhead Springs is the inverted arrowhead pattern on the hillside behind the hotel, pointing in the direction of the natural hot springs below. Mythical stories abound on the origination of the geographic point of interest.

Local historian Mark Landis noted in his book, “Arrowhead Springs: California’s Ideal Resort,” the stories surrounding the arrowhead’s origin are generally variations of Indian myths about a god shooting a fiery arrow into the hillside to mark a sacred location.

“The area where the Arrowhead Springs property sits is referenced in many Serrano stories and has always been critical to our history and culture,” San Manuel Vice Chairman Vincent Duro said in a statement Friday.

In its heyday, Arrowhead Springs was a playground for the Hollywood A-list, a luxurious getaway for celebrities such as Charlie Chaplin, Esther Williams, Lucille Ball, Clark Gable, Elizabeth Taylor and Humphrey Bogart.

It has yet to be determined if the land’s history will play a theme in San Manuel’s development of the property and if there will be any public facilities on the land, such as a historic museum.

“It will be a little while before we can comment on what the public uses of the property might be going forward,” Coin said.

Local historian Nick Cataldo said San Manuel is a good fit for the property, given the tribe’s financial resources and historical ties to the land. He said he hopes the tribe does consider the land’s history and uniqueness as it maps out development.

“The Arrowhead Springs property is a real gem to the area of San Bernardino, and I’d like to see it preserved that way,” Cataldo said. “I’d like to see the property open to historic tours. Riverside has the Mission Inn, San Bernardino has the Arrowhead Springs Hotel. It’s very unique.”

Joe Nelson is an award-winning investigative reporter who has worked for The Sun since November 1999. He started as a crime reporter and went on to cover a variety of beats including courts and the cities of Colton, Highland and Grand Terrace. He has covered San Bernardino County since 2009. Nelson is a graduate of California State University Fullerton. In 2014, he completed a fellowship at Loyola Law School's Journalist Law School program.